152 

 THE NUT WEEVILS. 



The nut weevils of the genus Balaninus are elongate beetles 

 that measure, exclusive of the snout, from about one-forth to 

 nearly half an inch in length. The snout is stiff and slender 

 and varies in length from half as long as the body in the males 

 of some species to considerably longer than the body in the 

 females of others. The prevailing color of the upper parts of 

 the body is rich, light brown mottled and spotted with lighter 

 shades. In a few species the color is dark brown to which the 

 lighter-colored, scale-like hairs give a grayish appearance. The 

 under parts of the body are uniformly lighter in color. 



The nut weevils are represented in this country by more 

 than twenty described species. About a dozen occur in the east- 

 ern part of the United States and of these at least ten are abun- 

 dant in West Virginia. So far as is known at present, all the 

 members of this genus feed on nuts. Of the species that have 

 been studied in this State, two feed on chestnuts and chinqua- 

 pins, one on hickorynuts, one on hazelnuts and six on acorns. 



The fleshy, cream-colored grubs, or " worms ", so abundant 

 in freshly-gathered chestnuts, and less frequently noticed in 

 other nuts, are the larvae of these weevils. 



The different species of this group closely resemble one an- 

 other. In a miscellaneous collection of the beetles, it is a difficult 

 matter to arrange all the specimens specifically. While the bee- 

 tles are alive, and their habits and movements .can be observed 

 on the trees, the resemblances are not so great. If one becomes 

 familiar with the beetles while they are engaged in their occupa- 

 tion of egg-laying he soon discovers peculiarities which enable 

 him to recognize the species on the trees without resorting to 

 close examinations for structural differences. 



LIFE CYCLE "!N A NUT SHELL." 



The normal life cycle in this locality for all the weevils de- 

 scribed in this bulletin is about as follows. Beetles issue from 

 the earth in July and August, several weeks after blossoms have 



